Gandhis must explain! Did Priyanka Gandhi, Robert Vadra have coffee with Lalit Modi in London? Did messages pass hands?

One thing is for sure. The drama being played out in the middle will definitely take a more combative turn. Armed with fresh ammunition, the NDA Government has already begun its counter-attack, pushing Congress on the backfoot. Sushma Swaraj and Vasundhara Raje Scindia could get a breather!

Meanwhile, Lalit Modi is enjoying the extended limelight, the rush. The last we saw of him was by the Adriatic, in Ibiza, giving a blunt, straightforward interview to Rajdeep Sardesai of India Today while sipping a glass of red wine. In it, he revealed multiple things, causing a major storm that refuses to die down.

The ex-IPL commissioner talked about his various political associations, about his closeness to the Sushma Swaraj and the Vasundhara Raje Scindia’s family. He shared how the foreign minister helped him purely on humanitarian grounds, he talked about how Vasundhara supported Lalit Modi’s immigration plea, but again, purely on compassionate grounds. He was especially tough on the UPA, which he believes has been running a vicious campaign against him for a long time.

He also mentioned how having to live in fear and not being able to be with his wife all the time was difficult to live with. He took many names and the after affects of the revelations are still being felt in the parliament, television studios, social media, and perhaps, even homes.

On Thursday, when Lalit Modi tweeted about meeting the Gandhis in London recently, he wasn’t coming from a nice place. Rather, he was rousing yet another storm. On the other hand, Lalit Modi’s mocking tweet gave the Narendra Modi-led Indian Government a much-needed respite from the relentless attack it is facing, and ammunition for a counter-charge.

And why not? Why did Priyanka Gandhi and her beleaguered husband, Robert Vadra, meet Lalit Modi in London? Did they try to avoid him by changing track? Did they embrace each other, like long lost friends? Isn’t this the very kind of bonhomie that Congress and the other critics are accusing the Government of? Was the duo so dumb that they failed to read the situation?

The Congress is on a damage-control mode. In fact, Priyanka has innocently denied any meeting. But will this exercise help? The public perception is already heavily pitted against the Congress, with their hypocrisy once again come to the fore. But the party doesn’t seem to care. It is convinced that attack is the best mode of defence and in doing so, the party is only dragging itself deeper into the hole. Constructive politics is becoming extinct in the Congress party. None of its leaders come out with solutions, they are most effective when someone has to be brought down.

At a time when India observes silence for the victims of the ‘Emergency’ era, Priyanka Gandhi and Robert Vadra decided to say hello to Lalit Modi. Bad timing or malintention? Or was it simply social courtesy?

One thing that Lalit Modi has successfully achieved is that by implicating numerous politicians, he has closed all doors that lead to India. But then again, maybe he knows it and is certain that he will never need to return back. He is happily settled in London, a city which has no complaints against Lalit Modi.

About the author

Rubi

Whether it’s women issues, politics or the paranormal, Rubi has an opinion on everything. Art and entertainment interest her, too. Hindu College alumni, she has written for The Hindustan Times and The Financial Express. Every now and then, she loves picking up her camera to capture life and its various shades.